Substantial effort has been exerted in the past and is continuing to be directed toward solution of the problem directing traffic in a manner to facilitate travel by individual vehicles between a wide variety of origin and destination combinations in a minimum amount of time. This problem is particularly severe in extended urban areas where individual vehicles commonly travel long distances from various points of origin to various destinations. Fleet operators in these environments suffer from not having effective utilization of their drivers and vehicles.
In most such extended urban areas, there is a wide variety of routes available to each vehicle. Accordingly, the travel time for each vehicle could be shortened and traffic control efforts could generally be much more efficient if individual vehicles could be supplied with the shortest elapsed time route information for their respective origins and destinations at the particular travel time for each vehicle.
Obviously, such information pertains not only to commuters but to business and recreational travelers at any time as well as service vehicles such as delivery trucks and the like.
At the same time, such information is particularly desirable in extended urban areas as noted above. However, it is more broadly contemplated that such information may be of value in any selected region, from small to large scale, where there are a variety of route segments available for traveling between different origin and destination combinations.
For purposes of the present invention, the San Francisco Bay Area has been selected as one typical extended urban region wherein such information and traffic control would be particularly desirable. However, it is to be noted that the selection of this region is merely for purposes of example. More broadly, as noted above, the invention is applicable to any region where there are various route combinations possible between each origin and destination combination.
Both commercial and government concerns have been attempting to develop traffic control systems for alleviating these problems. However, even where mass transit systems have been effective for transporting substantial numbers of people, there still remain large numbers of individual vehicles traveling throughout such extended areas, both during peak hours and throughout the entire day.
As noted above, many solutions have been explored or proposed for providing necessary traffic control in such situations. Possibly one of the most basic efforts was the supplying of maps, by Rand McNally Company and others, the maps presenting both distances in terms of statutory miles and normal travel times in hours and minutes along large numbers of interconnected route segments. Such maps were helpful to travelers in selecting a most efficient travel route. However, that information was generally accurate under optimum or standard conditions and did not provide any information to the user concerning instantaneous conditions along different route segments. U.S. Pat. No. 4,301,506 issued to Turco provided a computerized system for use in such situations. However, that patent contemplated an on-board computer or processor for each individual vehicle for providing alternative route information in the event of traffic stoppage along any particular route segment. This solution was relatively complex and expensive and in addition, generally did not provide assistance until the individual vehicle encountered an actual condition of traffic stoppage or back-up.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,350,970 issued Sep. 21, 1982 to von Tomkewitsch provided yet another traffic routing and information system in which stationary routing status transmission poles were used to monitor traffic flow and to transmit information concerning traffic conditions to passing vehicles. However, within this system, it was necessary for each individual vehicle to have the capability for transmitting travel time information between the fixed pole locations along a given route. A central computer or processor was coupled with the fixed poles to assemble information from the vehicles and, in turn, to provide information to the vehicles through the fixed transmission poles regarding conditions to be encountered by the vehicles.
Here again, however the system was relatively expensive and complex in terms of the equipment required for the individual vehicles.
More recently, U.S. Pat. No. 4,812,843 issued Mar. 14, 1989 to Champion, III, et al. provided yet another traffic information system directly accessible by individual users by means of telephone, mobile telephone or computer. In this system, a central computer or processor provided a sorting function of selecting traffic information specific to a contemplated route for each individual vehicle and transmitting only the appropriate information to the respective vehicles.
Here again, although relatively efficient, this system was capable only of providing information to individual vehicles for predetermined routes of travel.
The above are only representative of a very wide variety of traffic control systems adapted for resolving such problems. It is particularly important to note that, while advancing technology, a wide variety of means are available both for transmitting necessary information and for accomplishing necessary monitoring in such systems. It is particularly to be noted that conventional or wire-tied telephones have long been available for such purposes. More recently, mobile or cellular telephones have become increasingly popular and provide one particular means for supplying information to individual vehicles. It is also to be noted that mobile or cellular telephones are merely one form of a wireless communication link between a central processor or the like and individual vehicles. Other forms which would perform the function are two-way radio, paging, text messaging systems, personal communication services (PCS), fax, satellite link and the like at any frequency by any means.
In any event, there has been found to remain a need for a more effective traffic control system for supplying instantaneous route information to individual vehicles, particularly vehicles faced with a variety of routes between a given origin and destination combination. The fleet owner has the same problem in deriving the benefits of efficient and profitable operation of his fleet.